HVS Announces Development Services Group

4th Feb 2003

Stephen Rushmore, President of HVS International, a leading hospitality services firm, has announced the formation of the Resort Development Services Group within the HVS Timeshare Consulting Services division of HVS International and appointed Mark Earle as the Managing Director. The Resort Development Services group will provide acquisition and development services including growth plan execution, branding and marketing alliances, owner representation and supervisory services for operations during vacation ownership product sales, and assistance with securing partners and financing for vacation ownership projects.

In making the announcement, Rushmore said “This HVS group was created to meet the complex demands of vacation ownership and mixed use resorts, both of which represent the fastest growing segments of the hospitality industry.”

Kathy Conroy, President of HVS Timeshare Consulting Services added, “The mission of HVS Resort Development Services will be to assist HVS International clients in both the new development and conversion of existing resort assets through our expertise and the contributions of strategically selected partners. Mark and his group now enable HVS to assist clients in implementing and executing the development plans recommended by the firm’s consulting group during the feasibility and planning process.”

Prior to his joining the HVS organization, Earle was a 22-year veteran with Marriott, where he successfully tackled numerous development assignments with emphasis on international and domestic full-service and luxury hotel, resort, and fractional ownership projects.

Most recently, as Vice President of Resort Development for Marriott International’s fractional ownership division, Mark developed projects generating $2 billion in total sales, including the award-winning landmark Boston Custom House conversion. He was also instrumental in launching the Ritz-Carlton Club development pipeline and producing its inaugural project in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.

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Earlier, he spearheaded Marriott International’s franchise presence in the United Kingdom by generating a 12-deal pipeline of hotels, working from Marriott’s London office. As a Marriott full- and limited-service hotel developer, he produced 26 new hotels with 6,100 rooms and negotiated management contracts for hotels valued at more than $50 million. As director of hotel business planning, Mark conducted comprehensive market analysis, feasibility studies, and business plans for 22 hotels totaling 6,850 rooms. Included is Marriott’s pivotal Marquis Hotel in New York’s Times Square and Palm Springs’ famous Desert Springs Resort. In his earlier Marriott years, he opened new markets for Marriott’s chain restaurants.

Mark has a master’s degree from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Management and has since lectured at Cornell, as well as at industry development conferences. He is a member of several industry associations including the American Resort Development Association, the Cornell Hotel Society, and the Cornell Real Estate Council.